


Love Beneath the Moon

by Anima_princess_1



Series: Moon [1]
Category: The Dragon Prince (Cartoon)
Genre: Family, Love Story, Marriage, Marriage Proposal, Married Life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-13
Updated: 2019-07-13
Packaged: 2020-06-27 15:32:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,496
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19793809
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anima_princess_1/pseuds/Anima_princess_1
Summary: After retuning Zym the Dragon Prince to his mother, Rayla, Callum, and Ezren (and Bait, too, of course) have become the heroes of both Xadia and Katolis. Now the humans and the elves have agreed to talk peace and unite the continent. And, when their elders decide that, as two of the three heroes who brought all this about, Callum and Rayla are to marry to seal the treaty, the two teens don't object. Why would they when they fell in love during the journey into Xadia and to the Queen of the Dragons? But will the humans be ready to accept a Moonshadow elf as their new princess?





	1. Peace Talks

It had been a month since Rayla, Callum, and Ezren had returned Zym to his mother and averted all out war between Xadia and Katolis. Now all that was left was to negotiate a peace treaty. The elves were coming to Katolis to discuss the treaty and Callum and Ezren could hardly wait. They had received a message arrow from Runaan stating that he and Rayla would be among the elves coming to the castle.  
♡♡♡  
"They're almost here," Ezren said excitedly.  
He and Callum were in the tallest tower of the castle and had just spotted the delegation party from Xadia. Callum stood next to his half-brother. He was just as excited about the elves' arrival as Ezren was; he was just better at hiding it. After a month they were going to be reunited with Rayla. The three had become good friends during their journey to return Zym to his mother. But Rayla and Callum's relationship was vastly different from Rayla and Ezren's. Callum and Rayla had fallen in love and Callum had asked Ryala to marry him when peace was officially made.  
Both princes made their way down to the throne room. Like Rayla, they wouldn't be taking part in the peace talks. Rayla had simply come at Runaan's insistence so she could spend time with her two friends. However, they were expected to be there to greet the delegates. Elves from each of the six regions within Xadia were there as well as representatives and nobles from each of the five kingdoms. As soon as the formalities were over, Callum, Rayla, and Ezren were excused until dinner.  
The two princes lead Rayla to the room that she would be using during the peace talks. Unlike the rest of the delegates from Xadia, Rayla wasn't staying in the guest wing; her room was right across from the princes' room. While the servants had done up the rooms in the guest wing, Callum and Ezren had made up Rayla's room themselves. The sheets, comforter, and drapes were white with purple accents and the furniture was made of light wood. The wardrobe was filled with dresses, gowns, and other clothes and a gilded, full length mirror stood nearby while white lilies in purple vases were on every flat surface.  
"It's beautiful," Rayla said looking around the room.  
"We decorated it ourselves just for you," Ezren said. "Our room is just across the hall."  
A tea table stood near the middle of the room and was set up for tea for three with a plate of twelve jelly tarts (grape, strawberry, persimmon, and a new flavor the baker was trying out for the Xadian delegates: moon berry). The three friends had tea and caught each other up on the events of the past month. Rayla told Callum and Ezren that she had visited Zym and his mother shortly before leaving for Katolis and that the Dragon Prince was doing fine while the princes told Rayla that they had Varden's secret chambers and everything in it destroyed and the few creatures he was holding (both magical and non-magical) were set free.  
All too soon it was time to get ready for the welcome banquet. Ezren and Callum left Rayla so she could get cleaned up and change in to one of the gowns that they had commissioned the royal seamstress to make for her. (It had been a difficult task since neither prince knew Rayla's measurements but the seamstress's assistant looked to be roughly the same size so she had been a stand in for the fittings. The seamstress had told them that, if something wasn't right with anything, to send word and either she or her assistant would come to make any last minute adjustments that were needed.)  
"Are you ready, Rayla?" Ezra asked from where he and Callum waited outside her door.  
Rayla came out of her room wearing a sleeveless teal gown with a flowing skirt and a beaded top. Her snow white hair was curled and worn down with a beaded headband just in front of her horns and she had on silver and opal jewelry and a pair of silver kitten heels. She had also put on some of the makeup and perfume that was on the makeup table in her room.  
"You look really pretty," Ezren said. Callum didn't say anything; just blushed slightly as he looked at Rayla.  
Both princes were dressed in their best suits and crowns and even Bait looked somewhat presentable. Ezren was bringing the glow toad with him but Callum had told Rayla earlier that that Ezren would more than likely be excused after dinner since he was only eleven.  
The friends entered the banquet hall. Everyone else was already there, all dressed in their best clothes and taking amongst themselves. Mostly it was the humans talking to the humans and the elves talking to the elves but they did see Runaan and Lujanne talking with General Amaya and Commander Gren like they were old friends. Claudia and Sorran were also talking with the four adults but it was clear that the siblings were slightly uncomfortable talking with Runaan and Lujanne because of the guilt they felt over what their father did.  
Dinner was served and everyone took their seats. It was all assigned seating to ensure that all the delegates would be able to talk through dinner and that the humans and elves couldn't stick to their own. Fortunately, Rayla was sitting between Callum and Ezren. This would make it easier for the three friends to talk. Sorran was sitting next to a moonshadow assassin while Claudia was next to a moon mage. Runaan and Lujanne were sitting with General Amaya and Commander Gren with Commander Gren next to General Amaya so he could translate for her.  
Dinner consisted of dishes from each of the five kingdoms as well as delicacies from Xadia. Rayla was eager to try some of the food her friends had grown up with (as well as her favorites from Xadia) while Callum and Ezran were equally eager to try Rayla's favorites from Xadia (as well as their own favorite dishes). The three friends also noted that they were the only ones that had been served moon berry juice instead of wine. However, they didn't care. They laughed and talked throughout the meal unaware how the grown up felt uncomfortable. Here they were adults and three children were getting along better than they were. They were going to have to take a lesson from them and learn to put their differences aside if the peace talks were going to be successful.  
The next morning...  
Rayla woke early and hurried down to the kitchen to meet Callum and Ezren for breakfast. The peace talks were scheduled to start that day and the three friends planned to spend the day together. After breakfast, Callum and Ezren took Rayla out to the stables for a surprise. Callum made Rayla turn around before he went to get her surprise.  
"Don't let her look until I say, Ezren," Callum called.  
"I won't," Ezren answered.  
"So just what is this surprise?" Rayla asked.  
"You'll see."  
"Okay, Rayla," Callum said. "You can turn around."  
Rayal turned to find Callum holding the reigns of the most beautiful mare she had ever seen. She had big brown eyes and a main, tail, and coat as white as Rayla's hair. Rayal went up to the horse and stroked her neck.  
"She's beautiful," Rayla said.  
"She's yours," Ezren said coming up to the two teens.  
"What's her name?" Rayla asked not taking her eyes off the horse, her horse.  
"Moonglow," Callum answered. "Do you want to go for a ride?"  
Rayla smiled and nodded. Moonglow was already saddled and a groom brought out Callum's stallion Stormbringer and Ezren's colt Lighting. Stormbringer was a hansome brown steed (an Arabian like Moonglow) and Lighting was a jet black Tennessee Walker. As the three friends rode off, they passed Sorran who was sparing with his new friend from the welcome banquet. Claudia and her new friend from the banquet were in the library trading spells. Meanwhile, the delegates were deep in discussion.  
♡♡♡  
The talks were going well and a lot of ground had been covered. However, the Xadian delegates had one final thing to discuss before the talks concluded to the day. The head of the Xadian delegates rose and shuffled some papers.  
"Before we conclude this session," he said, "there is one last thing we must discuss. Many back in Xadia have concerns about this alliance so it has been decided that, to ensure peace, there should be a union between an elf and a human noble. We will let General Amaya and Commander Gren select the humen's representative while Runaan and Lujanne will choose a suitable elf."  
♡♡♡  
After returning from their ride (and a picnic lunch the servants packed for them), Rayla, Callum, and Ezren brushed, stabled, and fed Moonglow, Stormbringer, and Lighting. Once the horses were tended to, they still had a good hour before dinner. Ezren went off to play with Bait while Callum took Rayla to the gardens. There was a spot that no one really went that was the perfect place to go to be alone. However, Callum and Rayal weren't the only ones in the gardens.  
"We had no idea that they were going to suggest that," Runaan said.  
"Marriage is sometimes used to seal a treaty between tribes back in Xadia but for the other delegates to even think about using it in this instance...As Runaan said, we had no idea," Lujanne said.  
"It doesn't matter now," Commander Gren translated for General Amaya. "We need to thinks of who we will suggest for this marriage to the others tomorrow."  
However, they couldn't think of anyone. None of the nobles that had come to the peace talks would be willing to marry a complete stranger unless there was something in it for them and many of the elves didn't know that much about proper social protocols within the human court. They were just about to give up hope, a noise drew their attention. Following it, they discovered Callum and Rayla. Completely unaware that they had been discovered, the two teens were sitting on one of the stone benches kissing.  
"I think we just found who to suggest to the others," Lujanne said.  
♡♡♡  
Dinner that night wasn't as formal as the one the pervious night. After getting cleaned up, the friends changed into slightly more appropriate clothes before making their way down to the dining room. They had hoped that, like breakfast and lunch, it would be just the three of them but the adults had made it clear before the peace talks even started that everyone would have dinner together.  
Unlike last night's dinner, there was a lot less tension among everyone. A day spent together had lead to common ground having been found and friendships having been formed. Elves and humans were taking to each other as if they were old friends and freely mixing among each other.  
After dinner, desert was served followed by some entertainment. A small group of elves told stories of mages and warriors from long before the divide. It was very late by the time the stories were done. Ezren had gone to bed and everyone else was talking and circulating. Runaan, Lujanne, Genreal Amaya, and Commander Gren found Callum and Rayla out on the balcony talking and taking in the night air.  
"Can we talk to you two for a moment?" Runaan said.  
Callum and Rayla looked at each other, trying to figure out what they did to get into trouble.  
"The delegates from Xadia have made a request to ensure the alliance," Lujanne said. "They're proposing a marriage between an elf and a human noble. You two get along so well and you're the ones that put an end to the war before it even began. We were hoping that you would agree to it."  
"We can agree to the delegates' terms but there is something you should know," Callum said.  
"We're already engaged," Rayla said.


	2. Royal Wedding

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The princes left their room to find Rayla leaving hers. Tonight, she was wearing a sparkly white top with a flowing black skirt and low black heels. Her hair was done up in an elaborate braid accented with jeweled flowers and she had on the same opal jewelry she wore the night of the welcome banquet.  
> "You look really beautiful," Callum said.  
> Rayla looked away, her cheeks a rosy color and not from her blush. Callum took her hand and lead her down the hallway towards the banquet hall. Ezren followed behind them.  
> "Tell me this isn't what it's going to be like when you two get married," he said.  
> They entered the banquet hall to find everyone already there. The head of the Xadian delegates came up to them.  
> "There you are. We've been waiting for you," he said.  
> He quickly guided Callum and Rayla into the banquet hall leaving Ezren to follow.  
> "The guests of honor have arrived," he said.  
> "'Guests of honor'?" Callum and Rayla said together.  
> "Of course. This is your engagement party."

The next day, all the delegates were informed that Callum and Rayla were the ones chosen to seal the treaty with their marriage. It was agreed that they were the best choice since not only where they the one who returned Zym to his mother but Callum was also a prince. But it also opened up a lot of arguing. The elves wanted a traditional Xadian wedding but the humans wanted a traditional royal wedding since Callum was a prince and Rayla would be a princess once she became Callum's wife.  
"Neither side is willing to budge," Lujanne said when she, Runaan, General Amaya, and Commander Gren met with Callum and Rayla when the delegates took a break for lunch.  
"The elves want a Xadian wedding, the humans want a royal wedding," Runaan said. "It's a big mess."  
"It's like this marriage was suggested just to cause arguments," Commander Gren translated for General Amaya.  
"Could these help?" Callum asked passing several pieces of paper to his aunt.  
"What are they?" Commander Gren asked as Amaya took the papers.  
"It's what we want for our wedding," Rayla said.  
The pictures depicted a seamless blend of a Xadian and royal wedding. All the important aspects were there. The ceremony was depicted in the royal gardens as Xadian tradition dictated with elements from each of the five human kingdoms as was part of a traditional royal wedding while the reception was depicted with all the traditional elements of a royal wedding with flowers and gemstones incorporated as per Xadian tradition. Even the gown Rayla wanted to wear incorporated both cultures.  
"This is just what we needed," Runaan said. "No one can argue over these when both traditions are being represented."  
♡♡♡  
When the talks resumed after lunch, the first topic was the wedding. And almost immediately the arguing started. A piercing whistle sounded, getting everyone's attention.  
"This is how the wedding will be," Runaan said as Callum's sketches where distributed among the delegates.  
"What's this?" one asked.  
"It's what Callum and Rayla want for their wedding," Lujanne said.  
"They're not old enough to know what they want for a wedding," another delegate said.  
"They're old enough to be getting married," Commander Gren translated for General Amaya. "They know what they like and it is their wedding. Besides, their ideas combine the elements of a traditional royal wedding and a traditional Xadian wedding so both sides should be happy."  
The delegates talked amongst themselves. Finally, they agreed that the wedding would proceed following Callum and Rayla's plans. The talks moved on to other matters such as trade, trade routes, and border disputes.  
♡♡♡  
"Why didn't you tell me you and Rayla were getting married?" Ezren asked as he and Callum got ready for the banquet that night.  
"We were going to wait to announce our engagement until after peace was secure," Callum told his brother. "This just kind of sped things up."  
"So when do you think the wedding will take place?"  
"If the delegates agree, my guess is before the end of summer. Now come on. The banquet's about to start and we still have to meet Rayla."  
The princes left their room to find Rayla leaving hers. Tonight, she was wearing a sparkly white top with a flowing black skirt and low black heels. Her hair was done up in an elaborate braid accented with jeweled flowers and she had on the same opal jewelry she wore the night of the welcome banquet.  
"You look really beautiful," Callum said.  
Rayla looked away, her cheeks a rosy color and not from her blush. Callum took her hand and lead her down the hallway towards the banquet hall. Ezren followed behind them.  
"Tell me this isn't what it's going to be like when you two get married," he said.  
They entered the banquet hall to find everyone already there. The head of the Xadian delegates came up to them.  
"There you are. We've been waiting for you," he said.  
He quickly guided Callum and Rayla into the banquet hall leaving Ezren to follow.  
"The guests of honor have arrived," he said.  
"'Guests of honor'?" Callum and Rayla said together.  
"Of course. This is your engagement party."  
Rayla and Callum looked at each other. An engagement party? They were hoping to just spend a few hours at the banquet and then go off to the gardens to walk in the moonlight and talk. Now there was no way that they could leave. Of course, they knew that this was going to happen sooner or later. It was best to get the engagement party out of the way. The young couple was whisked away into the crowd of people wanting to congratulate them and ask them questions about their upcoming wedding and their plans for the future.  
Several days later...  
Rayla hated fittings. It took forever and the seamstress was always pulling or straitening something. She didn't even know why she had to be fitted for her wedding dress. The royal seamstress had done a wonderful job getting the fit just right for the gowns and dresses Rayla had worn to the banquets, parties, and dinners she had attended with Callum and Ezren since arriving in Katolis without fitting.  
"It won't be that much longer," Lujanne said correctly interpreting the frustrated look on Rayla's face. "You want your gown to be perfect for your wedding, don't you?"  
"I do," Rayla said. "I just hate standing around doing nothing."  
Once the seamstress was done, Rayla changed out of her gown and back into her regular cloths.  
"Something else is bothering you, isn't it?" Lujanne said after the seamstress left Rayla's room.  
"It's just the other day when I was looking for Callum after his sword training, I accidently over heard something," Rayla said. "Opeil was talking with one of the High Council members and she was saying how this time next year there would be a new royal baby in the palace. I just...I don't think I'm ready to have children yet. I want Callum to myself for a little while first."  
"I think I can help you with that."  
Lujanne took Rayla to her room in the guest wing. Once there, she took out a necklace with a glittering stone on it.  
"Here, put this on," she told Rayla.  
"That's not one of you moonstones like the one you gave to Ava, is it?" Rayla asked.  
"No. This is a rune stone," Lujanne said as she fastened the necklace around Rayla's neck. "Rune stone hold ancient magic. This one will prevent you from becoming pregnant. Once you and Callum decide that you're ready to start a family, you can take it off."  
Rayla held the rune stone in her hand and looked at it.  
"How did you get one of these?" she asked.  
"All elf maidens are given one when they come of age," Lujanne said. "I'm actually surprised you parents didn't give you one."  
Rayla looked away. She hated talking about her parents. When she was younger, they had no time for her and, when they became members of the Dragon Guard, they had left her with Runaan and hadn't even bothered to keep in touch. Runaan was the closest thing she had to a parent. He had raised her since she was ten and taught her sword fighting, archery, hand to hand combat, survival skills, and some magic. He had even taught her about humans and she didn't blame him for not knowing that everything the elves thought they had known about humans wasn't true.  
When she had sent a letter to her parents after the second day of the peace talks telling them that she was getting married, they hadn't bothered to reply. She knew that they had gotten in because Runaan had used a messenger arrow to send it. She had thought they would want to at least know who she was marrying and know that she wouldn't be returning to Xadia since she was going to be living in the palace.  
"What's wrong?" Lujanne asked.  
"It's nothing," Rayla said as she tucked the rune stone into her shirt. "I have to go. I promised Callum I meet him in the library after my fitting."  
♡♡♡  
"What's this surprise you want to show me?" Rayla asked as Callum lead her through one of the towers.  
"If I told you, it wouldn't be a surprise," Callum said.  
Once at the top of the tower, Callum lead Rayla out on to one of the balconies. It over looked the nearby forest and table was set up for a candlelit dinner for two. With the sun setting and the sky streaked with yellow, orange, and pink with just a hint of twilight violet and blue it was extremely romantic.  
"I know you're not used to all the dinners and parties we had to attended so I talked with Aunt Amaya and she agreed that we could have dinner here tonight...just the two of us," Callum said as Rayla took in the scene before her.  
"Callum, this was so thoughtful," Rayla said.  
Callum pulled out one of the chairs for her before taking his own seat.  
"So what are we having for dinner?" Rayla asked as Callum lifted one of the two metal covering on the table.  
"Roast beef with potatoes and greens and a Xadian fruit salad," Callum answered. "And for dessert..."  
"Moonberry cake," Rayla said when the second covering was removed. "My favorite."  
The two talked during dinner about everything and nothing, simply enjoying the other's company. They told each other stories about their childhoods and talked about the plans for their wedding which was only three weeks away.  
"I almost forgot," Callum said during dessert. "This came for you today."  
He handed Rayla a letter.  
"It's from my parents," she said excitedly as she broke the seal.  
"So what does it say?" Callum asked. "Are they going to make it in time for the wed...Rayla, what's wrong?"  
Rayla face fell as she read the letter.  
"They're not coming," she said.  
"They're not?" Callum asked in disbelief.  
"They say they have more important things to do."  
Callum had never seen Rayla look so upset and he could honestly understand. She was getting married and her parents weren't coming. True his weren't either but he knew that, if they were alive, they would be there. Rayla never wanted to talk about her parents so Callum decided that tomorrow he would talk to the only one he knew would be able to tell him what was going on between Rayla and her parents besides her: Runaan.  
♡♡♡  
"Runaan, can I talk to you for a minuet?" Callum asked the moonshadow elf when the delegates took a break for the morning.  
"Is there a problem?" Runaan asked.  
"I'm not sure. Do you know anything about Rayla and her parents?"  
"Quite a bit. Did something happen?"  
"Rayla got a letter from them yesterday saying that they weren't coming to the wedding because they have more important things to do. She never wants to talk about her parents but I want to help her and I can't if I don't know what's going on."  
"It's complicated but basically Lunaria and Sombra never wanted her. Let me talk to her. I may be able to help."  
♡♡♡  
Rayla didn't look up when she heard someone approach the stall. She just kept stroking Moonglow. She found comfort in visiting her new horse and better understood the connection Ezren had with Bait, Ellis had with Ava, and Lujanne had with Phoe-Phoe.  
"Callum told me what happened," Runaan said.  
"I don't know why I'm so upset," Rayla said without turning around, she didn't want Runaan to see that she had been crying. "They never had any time for me. My parents don't love me."  
"Your parents do love you."  
"They have a funny way of showing it."  
"Rayla there's something you need to know."  
Rayla turned away from Moonglow and looked right at Runaan.  
"What is it?" she asked.  
"Lunaria and Sombra aren't your parents," Runaan said.  
"What do you mean?"  
Runaan came up to her and lifted up her chin.  
"Your mother was a powerful moon mage and your father trained to be a warrior," he said. "In fact, it was because of him that you met Callum in the first place."  
"You mean...?" Rayla started.  
"Yes, Rayla. I'm your father. After your mother died, the elders decided it would be better if Lunaria and Sombra raised you; they thought you would be better off with your aunt and uncle than with just me."  
"Why didn't you tell me before now?"  
"Remember when you told me that you could never find the right time to tell Callum and Ezren about King Harrow and every time you thought you did it was difficult to find the worlds because you didn't want to hurt them? It was like that. When you were younger, I didn't want you to think that I abandoned you because I didn't. If I could have kept you with me I would have. And when you got older it became harder."  
Rayla threw her arms around Runaan, for the first time giving not her mentor but her father a big hug. Tears ran down her cheeks but this time they were tears of happiness.  
"I'm glad you told me," she said. "And I want to hear all about my mother."  
"Once the wedding is over, we'll set aside some time and I'll tell you everything I can about her," Runaan said. "The delegates have decided in the interest of trust and friendship there will be an exchange. One warrior and one mage from each of the five human kingdoms will spend a year in Xadia with an addition warrior and mage keeping an eye on them while one warrior and one mage from five of the six elf clans will spend a year in Katolis with a warrior and a mage from the sixth clan keeping an eye on them. I've volunteered to be the one to supervise the elven warriors so I'll be here for an entire year. We'll have plenty of time to talk about your mother."  
"Can you tell me one thing though? What was she like?"  
"She was a lot like you."  
One day before the wedding...  
The castle was a beehive of activity. In just 24 hours, a royal wedding would take place. Following both Xadian and royal tradition, Rayla and Callum weren't allowed to see each other. That morning after breakfast, most of Callum's things were moved across the hall to Rayla's room which would become his room as well after the wedding. To make sure that the bride and groom wouldn't see each other, Rayla was saying in Lujanne's room in the guest wing for the night and the moon mage was keeping a close eye on her while Runaan was keeping a close eye on Callum.  
"The wedding's tomorrow," Runaan said as he and Callum rode their horses through the forest. "Are you ready?"  
"Yes. A little nervous, too."  
"I was nervous when I married Rayla's mother. Just remember that you and Rayla love each other."  
"It's not getting married that I'm nervous about. It's..."  
"The wedding night?"  
Callum nodded, his face turning red.  
"Did you ever talk to your step-father about it?"  
"We had "The Talk" a few years ago but that was about it."  
Runaan smiled at his soon-to-be son-in-law.  
"I can tell you what I remember from when Rayla's mother and I were married."  
Meanwhile, back at the castle, Rayla was having her final fitting for her wedding dress. As the seamstress put the final touches on, Rayla went through her mental check list. The royal garden was all set for the ceremony, the banquet hall was decorated for the reception, the guests had arrived, and her dress was done.  
"You are going to look so beautiful, Rayla," Lujanne said as the seamstress left to make the final adjustments to Rayla's dress.  
Rayla pulled her boots on without responding. She had a lot on her mind. It did, however, feel good to have Lujanne support her. She couldn't remember having the support of an adult female before. In fact, she couldn't remember having a strong female role model before. Now she had two since she was also becoming close with General Amaya. Lujanne sat on the bed next to Rayla and brushed a strand of hair out of the younger elf's eyes.  
"Tomorrow you'll a married woman," Lujanne said. "I don't think I could be any happier for you or prouder if you were my daughter."  
"Thank you," Rayla said. "It means a lot. I'm so excited but also nervous."  
"You have every right to be nervous. You're not only getting married, you're becoming a princess, the first elven princess in the human kingdom."  
"It's not the wedding or becoming a princess that I'm nervous about. It's...,"  
"Didn't your mother talk to you about this?" Lujanne asked when Rayla's cheeks turned a deep scarlet.  
"My mother died when I was really young and my aunt never had any time for me."  
"Well, I have been married a few times so I can give you some advice."  
The next day...  
The castle was even busier than it was the day before. Everything had to be just perfect for the royal wedding. Representatives from all over Xadia had arrived as well as those from the other four human kingdoms. Even the kings and queen of the other four kingdoms were there with their families and Zym and his mother had come along with the dragon that Callum and Rayla had risked everything to help (though Soren and Claudia were keeping their distance from her since she still hadn't completely forgiven them for what they did to her).  
"You look really beautiful, Rayla," Ellis said as she, Lujanne, and Claudia helped Rayla get ready. "Just like a princess."  
"Well she is going to be a princess after the ceremony," Claudia said as she put the finishing touches on Rayla's hair.  
Rayla looked at herself in the mirror. She had to agree with Ellis. She did look like a princess. Following the traditions of the Panarchy, her strapless, A-line dress was the purest white but it was accented with pail blue, the color brides wore in Xadia. Following Xadian tradition, amethysts and moonstones (the stones of the moonshadow elves) were stitched into the hem, the collar, and the waist along with pearls and about half a dozen pearl buttons were down the back. The door to the room opened and General Amaya came in wearing her best dress uniform. She came up to Rayla and fastened the most beautiful lace vail Rayla had ever seen to her hair just behind her horns.  
This belonged to my sister, she signed as Lujanne place a crown of jeweled flowers on Rayla's head. She wore it when she married Callum's father and then again when she married Harrow. She would be honored to see her daughter-in-law wear it on her wedding.  
♡♡♡  
The ceremony flew by, or at least it seemed that way to Rayla and Callum. They barely heard the officiant or even noticed the guests. They were far too busy focusing on each other. Once the officiant was done, Rayla and Callum exchanged their vows and rings. The officiant then declared them husband and wife and they kissed, ending the ceremony.  
The reception followed soon after. Food from all over the Panarchy was served as well as delicacies from Xadia. For desert, the baker had made all kinds of wonderful pastries and a beautiful moonberry wedding cake. Music and dancing soon followed and everyone was intermingling. Most of the guests would be returning home in the morning but Callum and Rayla were happy that Ellis, Ava, Zym, and his mother were going to be staying for a week. It was a comfort to know that Ezren wouldn't be all alone while they were away on their honeymoon. Also Queen Aanya of Durn had decided to stay for a short visit to pass on what she learned about being a child ruler to Ezren.  
It was late by the time everyone retired to their rooms. Once inside their room, Rayla and Callum began to kiss. With the door securely locked, they were safe from being interrupted (not that they would be since the adults all knew what was going to happen).  
"Are you ready for this?" Callum asked Rayla between kisses.  
"As ready as I'll ever be," Rayla said as Callum's hands moved down her back and undid the buttons on her dress.  
Still kissing, Callum scooped Rayla up in his arms and carried her to the bed. This was going to be a night neither of them was going to forget.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Notes: Okay, I think this was one of the longest, if not the longest, chapters I've ever written. But I had a lot of things I wanted to cover in this chapter. What did you guys think of the little twist I threw in there? For those of you curious about what happened to Rayla's mother, that will be in the next chapter. I had planned on including it in this chapter but came up with so much that I thought it would be better to devote a chapter to it. Also, there will be nothing inappropriate in any of my stories. I may lead up to it or follow up but that will be it.


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